September 30, 2007 7:20 pm

RB Shaun Alexander

RE: The 49ers defensive game plan

"They had a good one. They wanted to stop the run so they came out in a 4-3. It pretty much worked for them. Fortunately, we got some big plays from Deion (Branch), Julian (Peterson) and others. Guys like them stepped up big today."

RE: Hasselbeck’s growth

"He’s grown considerably. It shows in the ways he’s improved in managing the game and it shows in the amount of poise he has out there. He tries to be a perfectionist. I’m like that too. Maybe that’s one of the reasons why we’re good friends."

RE: Importance of game to Mike Holmgren

"Everytime he comes here, it’s like a homecoming. It seems like everybody here knows him from his days with the 49ers. It’s a big win for Coach Holmgren."

RE: Seneca Wallace

"This was the first time we’ve used all of his skills set. He’s so talented. Today you saw him running the ball, throwing the ball and catching the ball. He’s going to be one more threat in our arsenal."

RE: Darrell Jackson

"He and I came here at the same time. When we got started, it seemed like we both knew that if we didn’t play well, the team wouldn’t do well. But now we have so many weapons, Nate (Burleson), Deion (Branch) and others. That’s an awful lot for defenses to contain."

WR Deion Branch

RE: His reaction when Darrell Jackson left

"This is the NFL. It’s a big business. Things like that happen. I’ve been in the same position that he was in. I really didn’t think about it then. He was a great teammate but this is the NFL."

RE: Working with Matt Hasselbeck

"We’ve been pretty good since training camp. There were a few nuances we had to work out in training camp. The only thing you don’t get in training camp is the real game and the coach getting the flow of calling real plays. We don’t have that opportunity but we challenge each other into practice. When we work against another defense, we really get an opportunity to match up against another defense and do certain things."

RE: His 65-yard reception

"It was something we saw in film. We had the right coverage and we made the play. Coach (Head Coach Mike Holmgren) did a great job of trying to mix it up and giving them different looks. We got the right defense to make the play. It wouldn’t have worked if they had a different defense out there. There are so many things that have to happen. Everything happens so fast. If one of them makes a wrong move, it’s pretty much over."

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About

Gregg Bell joined The News Tribune in July 2014. Bell had been the director of writing for the University of Washington's athletic department for four years. He was the senior national sports writer in Seattle for The Associated Press from 2005-10, covering the Seahawks in their first Super Bowl season and beyond. He's also been The Sacramento Bee's beat writer on the Oakland Athletics and Raiders. The native of Steubenville, Ohio, is a 1993 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., and a 2000 graduate of the University of California, Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism.

Love the big win. I am pretty confident somewhere around week 8 we will start turning those field goals into td’s. It takes us a little time to get rolling on O, but when we do, look out NFC AND AFC!!!!!!!!!!!!

Snuggles,
You are mostly correct. Our ability to run on a consistent basis is the only problem that I see now, that, and snapping the ball and avoiding blocked punts. But then look at the Green Bay Packers, the happiest 4-0 one dimensional team in the NFL.

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